VACCINE buses could be deployed at Premier League games and music gigs in a desperate bid to get teens jabbed, it has been reported. Ministers fear 16 and 17-year-olds could be slow to take up the offer of a vaccine after they were given the green light for jabs this week. The rollout among teens is […]
VACCINE buses could be deployed at Premier League games and music gigs in a desperate bid to get teens jabbed, it has been reported.
Ministers fear 16 and 17-year-olds could be slow to take up the offer of a vaccine after they were given the green light for jabs this week.
The rollout among teens is expected in a matter of weeks, with work now underway to incentivise young people to get jabbed as soon as possible.
Measures could include mobile vaccine buses at large events that attract younger crowds – like music festivals, gigs and football games, i reports.
It would make it possible for youngsters to get jabbed during the upcoming Premier League football season, which starts next week, and any other festivals taking place this summer.
There are also plans to recruit social media influencers on Instagram and TikTok to encourage younger groups to get jabbed against Covid.
It’s understood there will be a focus on using influencers with a clinical background – like Love Island’s Dr Alex George.
At the same time, a billboard and social media campaign could warn youngsters to get the jab or “miss out on the good times”, The Times reports.
The ads would run on TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram in plans to boost the waning take-up rates.
It comes after the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) confirmed 16 and 17-year-olds would be offered the Pfizer/BioNTech jab.
The NHS will now start preparations to jab around 1.4 million kids across the country and children won’t need the consent of their parents.
As it stands, only kids aged between 12-15 with serious health issues such as neurodisabilities are currently able to get the jab.
Other conditions that make kids eligible include Down syndrome, immunosuppression or profound and multiple or severe learning disabilities.
Professor Wei Shen Lim, Covid-19 Chair for JCVI, said: “After carefully considering the latest data, we advise that healthy 16- to 17-year-olds are offered a first dose of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Advice on when to offer the second vaccine dose will come later.
“While Covid-19 is typically mild or asymptomatic in most young people, it can be very unpleasant for some and for this particular age group, we expect one dose of the vaccine to provide good protection against severe illness and hospitalisation.”
A total of 85,801,167 jabs have so far been dished out in the UK, including 46,926,330 first doses and 38,874,837 second doses.
